According to multiple publications, Sergey Lipinets’s manager Alex Vaysfeld has gone on record to say he is going to try to set up his fighter’s first IBF title defense to be against Adrien Broner. That would be a well matched fight if it were to happen.
Adrien Broner’s (33-3, 24 KOs) story is well know by now. The Cincinnati native was supposed to be the next big thing in boxing, but ever since moving up from lightweight in 2013, “The Problem” has experienced a myriad of issues in and out of the ring that have relegated him to opponent position. Where it is getting in trouble with the law, missing weight, or just plain losing to top fighters, Adrien Broner has not lived up to his original billing.
Broner still carries real name value though so it is easy to see why newly minted IBF titleholder Sergey Lipinets (13-0, 10 KOs) would look to add The Problem’s scalp to his wall. I am not sure it is a slam dunk defense for the new Russian titlist, however, as he has shown plenty of defensive vulnerabilities in his brief rise to his belt. It is true that Adrien Broner is probably not a real world level fighter at this point, but is Sergey Lipinets? Akihiro Kondo really tested him last weekend and Broner is a more dynamic fighter than Kondo.
Now two issues could stand in the way here. For one, I don’t see Broner in the IBF’s rankings. He’d need to be for an optional defense. If he suddenly appeared there so Lipinets could fight him, well, it wouldn’t be the first time a sanctioning body had blatantly compromised their own rankings for a fight like this. Second, while Broner did make junior welterweight against Mikey Garcia, this otherwise has not been something he has proven all that interested in succeeding at in previous years. Would he do it for this fight?
Reports stay that this fight is being targeted for March. Showtime would almost assuredly televise if it comes through.
